Well, if none of that really mattered in the long run....
Like I've said before, there's stuff that can be retconned/explained away and there's stuff that can't. Splinter (which I've had a copy of for years but still haven't gotten around to reading) sounds like the former while Chewie being in Episode VII would be an example of the latter.
There's a difference between ignoring something and actively contradicting it. I can understand the viewpoint that keeping continuity with the EU isn't worth Chewie's absence in Episode VII, but I also don't see why an in-continuity Episode VII necessitates people having read any EU. It really wouldn't. To be honest, this is kinda why I didn't like the news that Abrams was changing the script to focus more on Han, Luke and Leia. I wanted this new story - whatever it ends up being - to be told more from the younger generation's pov, much like Abrams' first Star Trek movie or the original Star Wars before it.